All of which means men and women both want great garages, albeit for different reasons.

And that’s why it’s so exciting to see Elite Homes of Unity Builders Group (UBG) open a garage display at its new Home Gallery on 55 Avenue N.E.

Men tend to drool over the display itself. But “it’s no secret women buy houses”—and women like what the display offers in terms of the potential for organized space, says Kurt Gibson, Home Gallery manager. Indeed, he expects outfitted garages to be the next “hot button item that sells a home,” right after design details related to kitchens and bathrooms.

With the garage outfitting industry just taking off in Canada, it may be a few years before many new home buyers routinely add the cost of garage organizational products to their initial mortgages. But it will happen, says Randy Seib of Garage Boyz, the company whose products are in the UBG display.

A Matter Of Space
It’s all about optimizing space, says Don Fetherstonhaugh, another professional garage outfitter. With a growing number of Calgarians not able to park a single vehicle inside their double-car garages, he says homeowners increasingly turn to professionals for help dealing with garage space consumed by everything from toys to tools.

This winter, Darrell and Kari Hayley hired Fetherstonhaugh’s company, Slide-Lok of Calgary, to transform a former indoor pool area into what the Hayley family calls their Toy Garage. The 27-foot-by-31-foot space is home to four go-carts, three quads and two snowmobiles.

Thanks to a vehicle lift, that all fits into one bay. This leaves a second bay for a workspace, complete with a series of black, powder-coated metal cabinets with a stainless steel backsplash and under-mounted fluorescent lighting.

“Everyone that comes through is just in awe,” admits the father of three. And what does Hayley love most about the new space? Besides its visual appeal, he likes the state-of-the-art coated floor that’s easy to clean and highly resistant to abrasion. He also appreciates the infrared heating system renowned for its energy efficiency and the fact it never kicks up any dust. “It’s the only way to go in a garage.”

If the desire to park indoors leads the list of reasons why people hire a professional garage outfitter to organize their garage space, lifestyle storage is number two, says Fetherstonhaugh.

While workbenches and sports equipment storage are obvious additions to the tricked-out garage, his company has also built wine rooms, smoking areas and entertainment spaces featuring massive TVs. Other clients, like the one who wanted to store a fully decorated Christmas tree, just want to make the most of their indoor real estate.

Big-box retailers offer an expanding line of garage storage options and most custom outfitters also carry some DIY options.

But most clients in the market for a custom job fall into what Gerry Collard of Garage Utopia calls the Do-It-For-Me demographic. “There is a segment of the population that doesn’t have the time or the skills to install a lot of the things that are available.”

And what’s available is astounding.

Garage Utopia’s showroom features an entire garage outfitted with tongue-and-groove panels that hold hooked baskets, shelves and racks designed to use a garage’s vertical space to hold specific items like bikes, tennis racket and balls, garden tools or miscellaneous balls, bats and sports shoes.

One unit, which holds up to 136 kilograms, hangs above the garage door, “so when your door opens your neighbours don’t even see it,” enthuses Collard.

And what the neighbours see does matter, says Seib, who calls the garage a “gateway to the home.”

“It’s going to come to the point where this is an option in a new house,” adds Collard.

In the meantime, he’s fielding more calls from women than men, all of which could make the tricked-out garage an investment in property—and relationships.

Take back your garage
Budget-wise organizational tips from the experts   

By Joy Gregory

What’s the hardest part about organizing your garage?

Getting started, says professional organizer, Shannon Grams. “Because we lead such harried, busy, crazy lives, we all feel overwhelmed by having just so much to do.”
The mother of three and owner of A Place for Everything, Grams professes to have “an absolutely fabulous garage.” Her secret? A place for everything—and everything in
its place.

Using a budget-wise system of sturdy shelves, black laundry baskets and labels, “my children never put their ball gloves in the basket that says swimming.”

The garage “tends to be the dumping ground because it’s not (in) the main area of the home,” adds Kathy Roberts of Clutter Busters. Her tip for the organizationally challenged? Put an organizational system in place, and then hone habits to keep it that way.

Here are seven ways to wrestle your garage from the throes of its current mess:
1. Pick a corner (any corner). How do you eat an elephant? “One bite at a time,” quips Grams.
She recommends taking the same approach to an out-of-control garage. Pick a corner. Any corner. Then sort, toss, put away.

2. Give yourself some time. Don’t think you have to do the whole garage in one day. Tackle sports equipment one Saturday, tools the next.

3. Use shelves, baskets, and labels. DIY shelves and shelving units are fine, but make sure they’ll hold what you’re storing. (Roberts had a client who insisted on storing paint in the garage, up high. The shelf broke, the car got a new dent—and paint.)
Label everything (even clear boxes) so you can read the labels from the garage floor. And deal with every item. No “Assorted Junk” labels, says Roberts.

4. Use your head, save your feet. Golf clubs and hockey gear go from the trunk to the shelf to the trunk. Store near the front of the garage.

5. Go vertical. Things like Christmas decorations, winter gear and summer beach toys only need to be handy when they’re in use. You’ll need a ladder to access these containers when needed. But you’ll be able to park in the garage (and will spend less time cursing boxes left on the floor).

6. Invest in protection.  Deck boxes and durable plastic totes are a great place to store deck cushions for the winter, or extra papers from your office. Given the cost of real estate, “the garage might be the only space where you can squeeze some more storage,” notes Roberts.

7. Implement a recycling zone. Ease recycling by keeping bins in one area. Include a “Donate” box for items you can drop off at clothing collection bins or at stores affiliated with charities.  NL